Brief #6 - Why Do So Few Residents Return to Mixed-Income Developments? Insights into Resident Decision-Making

In the largest public housing reform effort in any city in the U.S., several high-rise public housing developments in Chicago have been demolished and are being replaced by mixed-income developments. Advocates for public housing residents have worked hard to negotiate a “right to return” to these new developments, which contain a mix of public housing replacement, affordable, and market-rate housing. Yet, as in other cities across the country, only a small percentage of residents, about 11 percent, have so far returned to the mixed-income developments. As a result, relatively few relocated public housing residents are directly benefiting from the major investment being made in mixed-income housing.

In this brief, we explore the factors that influenced relocated public housing residents’ decisions to return or not return to a mixed-income development. Through interviews with relocated public housing residents of three mixed-income developments in Chicago—Jazz on the Boulevard, Oakwood Shores, and Westhaven Park—as well as a group of residents who chose not to return, we find that the following issues significantly influenced resident decision-making:

Attachments to place and people

Time pressures and other constraints

Anticipated benefits from the mixed-income environment

Trade-offs and risks associated with moves to mixed-income developments